Pakistan, Iran discuss oil and gas cooperation

( Irna ) - The Ambassador of Iran, Mashallah Shakeri called on the Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources Ahsanullah Khan here on Wednesday and discussed with him matter pertaining to promoting bilateral cooperation in the oil and gas sectors, an official statement said.

During the meeting both sides expressed satisfaction over the pace of progress on IPI gas pipeline project and reiterated the desire of their leaderships for its early implementation for the benefit of the entire region.

The Minister said that the government was taking concrete steps for exploiting the untapped hydrocarbon resources spanning over 627,000 sq.kms. sedimentary area onshore and offshore block would be opened for enhancing the oil and gas exploration activities in the country which would provide enormous investment opportunities for the investors.

Ahsanullah Khan said that there exists tremendous scope for promoting Pak-Iran ties in the oil, gas and mineral sectors and invited the Iranian companies to participate in the upcoming petroleum projects for learning a lot from each other experience.

Expressing his sentiments the Iranian envoy said that IPI gas pipeline project would not only open up new avenues of cooperation among the member states but also help to bring the regional countries closer.

Secretary Petroleum Farrakh Qayyum was also present during the meeting.